Given Forefronts: COP26 - So That’s Over - What Next?

Now that the hype is over, and the news reports, pledges, commitments and shocks have quietened, we are all no doubt thinking about what’s happened and where we go from here.

At best, our reaction to COP26 cannot be anything but frustration. Frustration that we didn’t manage to be more decisive and send an even stronger signal that the time has come to radically change how we live, consume and think about natural resources and our global community. With the spaghetti soup of priorities being so diverse, missed opportunities were probably inevitable, if not profoundly disappointing.?

It’s not all doom and gloom, though, and there is much that we can grab hold of and, if not celebrate, at least work with.?

The phasing out of unabated coal use and inefficient fossil fuel subsidies, as well as the funding of fossil fuels abroad, is a breakthrough, despite the language being watered down and the struggles to get there. And the agreement to double climate change adaptation finance, even though lower than what was asked for and is needed, is still significant. As are the 2030 pledges on curbing methane and halting and reversing forest loss and land degradation.?

The adoption of text that “requests ” that countries “revisit and strengthen” their climate pledges by the time COP27 begins next year is also important. While many will miss this deadline, as they did this time around, the yearly focus moves us on from updates being made every five years and indicates that all countries are expected to up their game year on year.?

However, deep disappointments overshadow these steps forward. Most notably, the refusal of developed countries to support the direct flow of finance to those countries already being adversely affected by climate change as part of the ‘loss and damage’ negotiations. While an unprecedented 12 mentions of loss and damage included in the final Glasgow Pact text signals that it is on the political agenda, the lack of broad support demonstrates the deep divides and individualism that still exist.

If we were in any doubt about these divides, we only have to examine the lack of access and participation that surrounded the negotiations. Despite being promised that this would be the ‘most inclusive’ COP ever, observers, activists and representatives of civil society and those most impacted by climate change were repeatedly excluded or found access complex and bureaucratic. Despite over 30,000 people attending COP26, it failed to create the required platform for diverse representation and the inclusion that was so desperately needed.?

Also concerning is the shocking lack of ambition and action between now and 2030, creating a widening credibility gap and placing huge pressure on the carbon budget in the years to come.?

Against that backdrop, the biggest question is, of course, whether COP26 did enough to keep 1.5C alive? The fact that this was even a question in the first place shows how far away we are from where we need to be, but to answer directly, yes, but barely. Once you add it all up, we are only just scraping 1.8C by the end of the century. While we can hope that we will do what’s needed to meet this and shave off those last few critical degrees, we will need a lot more than ‘just enough’ and optimism if this is to become a reality.?

So, when all is said and done, where do we go from here?

Firstly, we must all reflect. On our role, the work we do and what we will do in the coming months and years if we are to make a difference. We then have to get up and get going.?

For us here at Given, that’s about pushing our clients to do more, do it better, and be braver when it comes to steps they take. In practical terms, that looks likes:

1. Pushing for all businesses and brands to set science-based targets to reduce, at minimum, emissions across scopes 1, 2 and 3 by 50% by 2030 - and set out transparently how they will achieve it, reporting against their progress regularly and consistently. Ideally as part of a bigger goal to achieve net-zero emissions by mid-century. But achieving significant cuts by 2030 and transitioning your own operations to renewable energy sources must be an immediate priority.?

2. Starting the conversation about what it means to take a ‘whole business’ approach to tackling climate change. It can be easy to set a goal but much harder to accept that this also means addressing ‘toxic assets’, scrutinising your investments or halting lobbying against those policies and changes that have a short-term impact on your bottom line.?

3. Helping our clients to think about what climate justice means to their business and what it means they must do. This is about asking more challenging questions, what role do you play in ensuring that those most affected by climate change can adapt? What responsibility can you bear through your business practices to those who are already feeling the effects? Who can we learn from so we understand what role we can play better??

4. Committing to co-creation - bringing in diverse voices and those with lived experiences - not just part of a process but as part of your culture. We are never going to solve the climate crisis by doing what we’ve always done. We know we need to think differently, innovate for different ends and break out of the bubbles we inevitably find ourselves in. This can only be done through a willingness to listen, to unlearn current behaviours and ways of thinking and embrace an experimental and non-linear approach to creating change.?

So although COP left many of us feeling frustrated and concerned, there is also new momentum. It is now our responsibility to make sure that we do all we can to build on that momentum and where we see gaps, help our clients to address them. If COP26 showed us anything, it is that we can’t simply sit and wait for governments to provide solutions, businesses, brands and individuals must embrace the huge role they have to play.

-?Hannah Nascimento?is?Consultancy Director?at?Given Agency. Hannah's experience and expertise lie in achieving sustainable innovation and change whilst building a successful brand and business. She brings extensive experience in helping businesses define the role they can play in delivering a more sustainable world. She has led or been part of the teams that have created sustainability strategies for H&M, P&G, Nestlé, Taylors of Harrogate, and Barry Callebaut, among others. In addition to this she has extensive experience in stakeholder engagement, most notably the global stakeholder engagement program for Syngenta in 2018.